Naomi Osaka can feel a little better now.
A new star is being born in Flushing Meadows and her name is Leylah Fernandez.
The teenager from Montreal, who turns 19 on Monday, rallied from a set down to pummel three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber on Sunday at a packed Louis Armstrong Stadium to vault into the U.S. Open quarterfinals with a 4-6, 7-6, 6-2 upset.
It was a classic battle of lefty sluggers who dazzled across the late afternoon. But Fernandez wore down the 33-year-old, No. 16 seed just like she did to Osaka on Friday night. She has now beaten two former U.S. Open champions back-to-back.
“I did have to pinch myself a little bit to see that it actually happened, but I knew that my level of tennis is there,’’ she said.
The age difference could have played in Fernandez’s favor in the dominant third set.
“I was honestly tired in the third set, but with that thought, I was telling myself, ‘If I’m tired, she must be exhausted.’ ” Fernandez said. “Just try to put one more ball back in as much as possible.’’
Bouncing on her feet between points, Fernandez is a free spirit with an electric smile and spent the late afternoon punching the air, looking up to the crowd after winning numerous big points.
“From a very young age I’m just a happy-go-lucky girl,’’ Fernandez said. “I never took things too seriously.’’
When Kerber hit a backhand on the run into the net on match point, a deafening roar went up in Armstrong Stadium. Fernandez is the youngest women’s quarterfinalist at the U.S. Open since 2016.
Like against Osaka, Fernandez lost the first set and then won the second-set tiebreaker convincingly.
“I think she has a great future,’’ said Kerber, the 2016 Open champion. “She has a lot of power in her forehand and she’s going for her winners. I think she’s always also enjoying her tennis out there. I think she can go really far in the next few years.
“She had nothing to lose today. … It’s just a start of a great career.’’
Kerber admitted only a teenager like that can play with such a free spirit. Fernandez is only two years removed from winning the French Open — the junior title that is.
“It’s just the young people,’’ Kerber said. “It’s playing without completely pressure. In my position, it’s impossible, but I wish.’’
In the second-set tiebreaker, the young legs of Fernandez prevailed. She got up 5-1, after which Kerber turned to her coach and pointed there as if to say she’ll rally.
Indeed, Kerber raced back to within 5-4, but Fernandez’s nerves of steel prevailed as she crushed a return of serve down the line for a winner for a 6-4 lead and closed out the second set.
Fernandez has a terrific, angled forehand and mixes it up with a backhand slice drop shot that created a handful of magical rallies.
After losing the first set, Fernandez said she looked toward her box to let them know, “I’m all good, ready to fight.’’
Kerber battered the ball from the baseline, but Fernandez overpowered her and was the power player across the third set when she went up two breaks and cruised. Showing her clutch nature, Fernandez won five of her nine break points.
As a fellow lefty, Kerber sees a lot of her own serve in Fernandez. The Canadian admits she’s watched a lot of film of the German’s style and has tried to mimic a couple of her tactical shots.
“It’s for me also not easy to play against a lefty,’’ Kerber said. “It’s always tricky. There are not so many lefties on tour.’’
The run may not be over as Fernandez will face fifth seed Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.
“That’s going to be a very tough match,’’ Fernandez said. “She’s a great player, a fighter who returns a lot of balls.’’
Svitolina is 26 — seven years older than Fernandez. Will youth be served again?
